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Sterling Heights-based Rizzo Environmental Services Inc. and Ponte Vedra, Fla.-based Advanced Disposal Inc. are on the hunt for new people and equipment to carry out a new five-year Detroit municipal waste hauling contract to be finalized in the next few weeks.

Rizzo, which has contracts with about 30 communities in Southeast Michigan, and Advanced Disposal, which operates the Arbor Hills landfill in Northville and three transfer stations in Wayne and Oakland counties, were the winning bidders among seven companies.

They will handle solid waste collection and single-stream recycling in four zones of the city, Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr announced through a spokesman late last week.

The two contractors will divide the city's estimated 247,000 residences about equally by east and west starting in March. Rizzo will be the waste collector in Zones III and IV, which cover the northeast side and the area between I-94 and the Detroit riverfront, while Advanced Disposal has Zones I and II, or from the northwest side to Woodward Avenue north of I-94.

Chuck Rizzo, president and CEO of Rizzo Environmental, said his company expects to manage its zones for about $10.5 million to $11 million per year, but contract details are still being finalized. He also expects to purchase about 40 vehicles and hire at least 50 new employees to take on the added workload.

Taken together, the city estimates the two companies will cost between $23 million and $25 million per year and save the city about $6 million per year, compared with its current cost for employees of the Department of Public Works to collect waste and send it to the Detroit Renewable Energy LLC waste-to-energy plant.

"We're absolutely going to need all new vehicles for this particular contract, and we have to employ quite a few people," Rizzo said.

"We've been doing so many of these transitions lately, to add new services for local communities, that it shouldn't be a problem to carry out. And Detroit, in my opinion, seems to be doing everything on this contract in (concern for) what benefits the community."

"With this contract, the city is saving millions and improving services at the same time; this is a win-win for everyone," Detroit city COO Gary Brown said in a statement Thursday.

The two companies are expected to handle weekly trash collection before 5 p.m. for residential customers and add single-stream curbside recycling — a new service not currently offered to most city residents.

Rizzo said it's not immediately clear if the finalized contract will require the two companies to continue shipping all solid waste to the waste energy plant, also known as the Detroit incinerator. He said the city, through the Greater Detroit Resource Recovery Authority, will continue to pay for waste disposal on its own, separately from its collection and recycling contracts with the two hauling companies.

Detroit Renewable Energy subsidiary Detroit Renewable Power, owners of the incinerator, currently receives a $25 tonnage fee to collect the waste, and Orr spokesman Bill Nowling has said the city hopes to achieve savings in part by paying a more competitive rate that some other customers pay.

John O'Sullivan, president of Detroit Renewable Power, said Thursday the company has not had any discussions with either company about future arrangements for Detroit waste collection. The company is in talks with other potential new customers, he said, that could help offset any losses from reduced Detroit volume.

The two companies must also handle biweekly bulk trash disposal, previously a quarterly service within DPW, and extend job offers to DPW employees whose positions will be eliminated when the contract takes effect.

The city also plans to sell its fleet of garbage trucks to fund a campaign to clean up some of the worst cases of illegal dumping activity in Detroit neighborhoods and school zones.

The review committee — Brown, a representative from Orr's office, DPW director Ron Brundidge, the city purchasing director and a representative of the Greater Detroit Resource Recovery Authority — evaluated bidders on a 100-point sourcing process based on capacity to serve, experience on similar projects and basic service cost.

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